{4/5} “This isn’t right. We should split up. We can cover more ground that way.”

Five college friends go to a cabin in the woods for the weekend. When they venture into the basement they find a bunch of unusual items, including a diary that talks about horrifying events. Unbeknownst to them, they’re being watched — who are the watchers and what’s their connection to the people in the cabin?

The Cabin in the Woods was released in 2011.

I don’t usually watch horror movies, but this one was co-written by Joss Whedon (The Avengers). As with other movies written by Whedon (Serenity, Alien Resurrection, Toy Story), it has some very funny moments. But there are a lot of gruesome parts, which I tried to avoid looking at.

It’s tough to rate. On the one hand the premise, gradually revealed, is extremely clever. On the other hand, there were large parts of the movie where I wasn’t looking at the screen. If you don’t want to watch it because of the gruesome parts, just read a synopsis so you can find out what the premise is.

If you like both horror and science fiction, this is the movie for you. There’s a surprising cameo near the end.

Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Fran Kranz (the TV show Dollhouse), and Kristen Connolly (the TV show As the World Turns) play three of the watched. Richard Jenkins (The Visitor), Bradley Whitford (the TV show The West Wing), and Amy Acker (the TV show Angel) play three of the watchers. Jodelle Ferland (Tideland) has a small role.

The movie was directed by Drew Goddard (writer and producer on shows like Alias and Lost).